David and Nancy Harrington Correll were married about 1862 in Tennessee. They had eight children:
Isabell- born 1862, Mary Calla- born 1864, James - born 1868, Nancy- born 1872, Jarrett- born abt. 1869, Thomas- born 1870, William - born 1873 and Arminta- born 1877.
Isabell Correll married our Welzia Augustus Arrowood and started our line of Arrowood’s in the Gastonia area.
Thomas married Annie Evelyn Waldrupe about 1894. Thomas was born in Harrell’s Township, Mitchell County, North Carolina, the family moved later to Happy Valley, Blount County, Tennessee.
He and Annie had thirteen children. Two of those children were Ruby and Minnie. Ruby was born on February 13, 1908. Minnie followed soon after, on April 25, 1911.
Sister, Ollie Correll, was born on December 25, 1894, she was the eldest of the children. She would walk to work escorted by her boyfriend, on most days. One day in January of 1916, she made her way to work, apparently unaware that little Minnie and Ruby were following along the path, behind her. The snow and the weather had probably caused the creek to swell to a scary and fast moving body of water. Cold water.
Little Ruby, 7 years old, and Minnie, 5, followed Ollie, across the creek on a makeshift bridge and either one slipped in, and the other followed, or they both went in together. Sadly, their young lives were taken that day.
They drowned together on January 2, 1916. Swept downstream in a rapid torrent of water.
When they were found, they were still holding hands.
Together in eternity. I can only imagine what their poor mother endured that sad day.
Ollie must have blamed herself for the tragedy, a heavy burden for an older sister to carry. Ollie was about 20 in 1916, at the time of the accident.
Ruby and Minnie were buried together and share a marker at Redtop Primitive Church Cemetery in Happy Valley. Two little sisters, side by side, forever.
Ollie, the elder sister, lived to be 69 years old. She passed away on 12/06/1964 in Knoxville, Tennessee. She married Tolbert Delsmer Hensley. Together, they had eight children. On the 1920 Census she and Tolbert were living in Knox County, TN with their daughter, Lillie, age 2 ½ years old.
Thomas and Annie were both passed away and gone by the year of 1927. Thomas died at age 51 years and Annie passed at age 47.
They are buried at Redtop Primitive Church Cemetery, in Happy Valley.
Not far away, in Boone Cemetery, rests David and Nancy Correll. William, son of David and Nancy, along with his wife, Nancy Gardner Correll, also rests in Boone Cemetery.
Nancy C. Correll, sister to Thomas and Isabell, was born January 17, 1872. She married Thomas Grant Garland on May 30, 1893. They had five children. Nancy and Thomas Garland are buried there at Redtop Primitive Church as well.
Sister, Mary Calla, is buried alongside her parents in Boone Cemetery, just up the way, in Happy Valley.
Brother, James, is buried at Redtop, along with his wife Annie.
Arminta “Minty” Correll married Henry Watson Sellars and had a large brood of ten children. Arminta passed away on March 26, 1918, in Happy Valley, Tennessee.
That peaceful valley holds quite a few of our family safely, in heavenly rest. Quite a beautiful place for a final resting spot.
